What's in a name?

Well, I just read a post on the official WoW Forums regarding picking a name in roleplaying. So Unholypally, this post is dedicated to you.

What's in a name? Well, in the online world, our name is what everyone knows us by. Everyone on my server knows me as Gatrog. You all know me as Gatrog. But how did I become, Gatrog, instead of Grimtooth or l33tfurball22? Well for starters, I looked at the names of major lore characters. In the case of WoW, I saw Garrosh Hellscream, Grom Hellscream, Thrall, Saurfang, Dranosh, etc. I looked at some Orcish NPC's and finally, I decided on a mesh of many names, becoming Gatrog.

So how should someone pick a name? Well, depending on your race, you may want to look at the NPC's in your major city, or some of the major city. In the case of Unholypally, many elves are named along the lines of Thal'terar, Lor'themar. Basically a lot of ___'___. However, you don't have to do that! You could always pick a simple, easy name, just make it sound elven.

To keep it short, look at the names of major characters that belong to your race, specifically how they are spelled, what letters are common, etc. Do NOT copy the name exactly, but something similair. You aren't Lor'themar, but you can be Thal'terar. So pick your own name, be creative, but try to keep it specific to your own race. And for me, pleeassseee don't name yourself "L33thackzor22."

-Gatrog

How to Roleplay: OOC

How to Roleplay is a three part series that's intended to teach the reader how to roleplay.

Contrary to popular belief, roleplaying takes place both in-character (IC), and out-of-character (OOC).

How you act OOC is a VERY important part of your life as a roleplayer, because those actions may make a lasting impression. So what does it mean to be OOC? Well to be out-of-character, it means that the player is talking as themselves, , NOT Gatrog Grimtooth. Typically, OOC is symbolized by double brackets ((message here)). These brackets will become a key tool in your roleplaying arsenal, and if you want to establish yourself as a good roleplayer, being able to distinguish between IC and OOC is a must.

Now, where should you use OOC? The best places to talk OOC are in either a whisper, or a designated chat channel. (For the most part, Trade, General, LocalDefense etc. are always OOC.) Your guild may not allow you to talk OOC in your guild chat, so perhaps they have a separate channel, for example /join GuildOOC. In that channel, you can talk OOC without using brackets. You can do that, because it's already been asserted that the channel is for OOC chat. However, in channels such as whisper, say, or yell you should ALWAYS use brackets because many people will be roleplaying in them, and if you say "lol wut a nub" in the channel without brackets, people will think you're just a griefer (a term we'll discuss in a later post) and possibly put you on ignore.

As a roleplayer, knowing when to talk OOC, how to talk OOC, and where to talk OOC, are all important skills in establishing yourself as a knowledgeable, skilled roleplayer. If you can't OOC correctly, no one will expect you to talk IC correctly. So show some initiative, learn to OOC, and become a better roleplayer! Everyone will appreciate your skills even more when you impress them with your fancy new brackets (( )).

-Gatrog

Welcome to the Grimtooth Tavern!

Hello, various blog-readers from the internet!

I'm Gatrog Grimtooth, Orc Beastmaster. My reason for posting this introduction letter is to basically just give you all an idea of what I'll be doing here. For the most part, I intend for the Grimtooth Tavern to be a blog dedicated to roleplaying. Though most of what I post here will apply to MMORPGS across the board, I will have some World of Warcraft specific topics regarding the lore of the game.

Now that I've established that this will be a blog dedicated to roleplaying, here's a few other minor details. On this blog, I'm going to try to teach people not only -how- to roleplay, but how to roleplay well. I'm not the world's greatest roleplayer, though I've done my fair share and have an amazing guild that's taught me invaluable information that has been essential to my success in roleplaying.

Everyone has seen the "Bad Roleplayer" every now and then, and I want this blog to one day become a fountain of roleplaying knowledge, a place where if someone wants to start roleplaying, their friend will say "Oh, go read the Grimtooth Tavern." Hopefully, one day the blog will become that. However, it won't become that without -you- the reader. I'm going to listen to your feedback as much as possible, post what you want to read, and hopefully get some interviews lined up with guild leaders, officers, amazing roleplayers, and much more!

Just a bit of a hasty introduction! Hope you enjoy the blog! I'll begin official posts as soon as I can!

-Gatrog Grimtooth